A Touch of Silver
by glitterdreamer95
Summary: *Sequel to The Golden Gift* Jemma, stuck in the world of Middle Earth, has found her sister and is living happily in a cottage. When Strider comes and asks her assistance, she agrees. But soon, Jemma finds herself back in her apartment, along with some of her friends, and realizes how much trouble her brother is in. (Set in AU Middle Earth/modern day) *On Hiatus*
1. Chapter 1

It was strange how easy it was to get up at dawn, after one was used to going to sleep on time. I had discovered that dawn was a very pretty time of day, when the dew was still wet, and the rays of sun were just beginning to touch the earth. Not to mention the peace and quiet of the countryside. It had become almost second nature for me to get up, and silently dress, without waking Andrea.

I glanced at her, still asleep on her bed. I was so glad to have her back, especially since I figured we were stuck here, at least for now. She'd been at an inn, in a small town, not too far from where I parted with the fellowship. I remembered walking in to the stuffy inn, after a long day of riding, and glancing around only to see her. Andrea had been huddled in the corner, by the window. I'd immediately made my way over to her. When she spotted movement out of the corner of her eye, she turned and a sudden happiness had lit up her face. We'd hugged, of course, but hadn't made a big deal of it, like so many characters in cliché movies. I brought her with me, to find a place to live, while we tried to figure out how to get home. A thought struck me, and I realized that Andrea had never told me what had happened to her, once we'd been separated by the portal-thing. I shrugged and left the room.

I walked outside and breathed in the still night chilled air from last night. It was the perfect time to do some hunting. Grabbing my newly purchased bow and a handful of arrows, I made my way over to the little woods near the farm house. In a matter of time, I'd caught two rabbits, and what I thought to be a pheasant, but since I really wasn't a bird expert, it was only a guess. I thought about heading back to the house, when I heard someone clear their throat behind me. I turned, trying and failing to ready my bow as I did so, and saw someone I had not expected.

"Hello, Jemma." Strider greeted me.

"Hello," I replied back, "Goodness! Did you have to scare me so badly? I think I nearly had a heart attack."

"Sorry, I didn't mean for that to happen."

"Ok, I assume there's a reason you're here, and not off helping Frodo get the ring to Mordor?"

"Yes. The reason being, I would like to ask for your help in a battle."

"I can't."

"And why not?"

"I..well I found my sister, and I refuse to leave her alone again, or take her into the battlefield. She doesn't belong in a place like that. And neither do I , come to think of it."

"I think you're quite handy with the bow, a new skill?" He asked, raising his eyebrows, "But nonetheless, I've seen your handiness in a tight situation, and I know you'd be helpful in this. Surely, we can have your sister stay at the camp?"

I studied him, and noticed something different. He seemed cleaner, and his clothes were less ragged. Has he already returned to the throne? I pondered, which didn't make sense. I hadn't thought we had been here that long, of course with Andrea and I popping into their world like this, the timeline was surely to be a little bumpy.

"I'm not sure. Why don't you come back to our little house, and we can discuss it?"

He nodded, and picked up the rabbits, which I'd dropped when I turned to see him, and said, "Lead the way."

When we returned to the house, I saw that Andrea was already at work in her little garden, tending to the small sprouts. Her back was turned to us, and I heard her soft voice singing a song she'd written.

"Andrea! I'm back! And I brought...a friend with me." I called to her, playing a smile on my lips when she turned and waved at us.

"Do you want to get a fire going? We might as well cook some of this meat, since we have a guest, and since I'm sure neither of us has eaten yet."

"Of course!" Andrea called happily, and went inside.

"Mind helping me clean these? It'll be faster that way."

"Sure." Strider responded.

I set my bow and arrows near the door of the house, and then the pheasant on a small wooden table I'd bartered for the last time we were in town.

"So, I haven't exactly told her everything that went on, when I was with you guys." I started.

"Well, what does she know?"

"She knows I traveled with a group of guys for a while, before running into Brandon. Saying goodbye to you guys, and finding her at an inn." I summed up.

"I see." Strider acknowledged, "But it might be important to tell her that we were of noble intent when you traveled with us."

"Yes." I told him, a smile breaking on my lips.

We finished skinning the rabbits and pheasant and brought in the meat for Andrea to start cooking, and strapped the furs to the 'tanning' rack I'd made. Sure, it wasn't exactly a tanning rack, but it did the job, and provided some good, usable furs for clothes and things.

I held the door open, and gestured for Strider to enter our little abode. He stepped in, taking in the bedroom door at the far end, a kitchen, and another area where there were chairs gathered around a cold fire pit. The fire in the kitchen was crackling happily below a pot of nearly boiling water. Andrea stood above the pot, adding little bits of vegetables to the water, preparing to make stew.

"Please, make yourself at home." I told him, gesturing to the chairs in the living room, and also to the few chairs around a small table between the kitchen and living room.

He sat down, and looked to me.

"As I said, I need your help."

"What do you need her help with?" Andrea asked, looking at our guest.

"He wants help with a battle. I told him I couldn't." I told her quietly.

"Jemma! I'm surprised at you! Since when are you not in a helpful mood? Of course she'll help! And I will too." Andrea told Strider, who grinned.

"And you were worried about your sister, I like her. She's got a good fighting spirit." Strider gave me a smile. Great, now that Andrea had agreed to help, I didn't see a good way of getting out of this without agreeing. I sighed.

"I suppose we could help out a little, but Andrea, you have to stay at the camp."

"But…."

"No questions about it. I will not have you endangering your life. Imagine what our parents would say, if they found out you'd been hurt, or killed. No, I won't have any of that."

"You're no fun anymore." Andrea muttered.

"Well, since you've agreed to help, we need to leave as soon as possible."

"Why? Is it because the battle's about to begin?"

"Worse. The battle has already started, and I'm afraid the tables of chance are turning."


	2. Chapter 2

**So, it's been so long since I've read the books….I may have made up a battle before the whole 'Sauron falls' one...just to fit the plot; and I realize that orcs aren't really that scared of fire (I had to put something exciting in here). Also, sorry this took a little time to get up, I was getting through the second week of school, (you know, the week where the teacher's jump right into giving lots of homework?) so I was a little distracted from the story...and feel bad about it. Oh, and I might have paraphrased some of the lines from the movie in some spots, so I should say that I don't own those. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter! :)**

It didn't take long to get some food and clothes together for our journey. I fetched my bow, and dagger, and had Andrea saddle our horse. Strider left for a while, and returned with a horse of his own. Once our horse was saddled, I mounted it, and helped Andrea climb on in front of me.

"Ready?" Strider asked.

I nodded at him, "Lead the way."

Our horses set off at a gallop. I'd forgotten how hard it was to ride a horse at this speed, especially with another person in the saddle with you. I leaned forward a bit, and Andrea did the same, just enough so I could keep my grip on the reins.

"Do you think it's far away?" Andrea asked.

"Who knows? Could be on the other side of Middle Earth, for all we know."

"Oh." Andrea acknowledged.

We rode the rest of the way quietly, occasionally breaking out small talk or to say that we needed to take a break. It didn't take too long to get to an encampment, where we stopped and unseated ourselves from the saddles. I noticed that it seemed to be void of life, nothing stirred or moved. They're probably all out at battle.

"Well, welcome I guess." Strider told us, gesturing to the tents, " I think Gandalf would like to have a word with you."

"Sure, lead the way, Strider." There was a pause on his end, while he considered me.

"Call me Aragorn, if you like." I nodded, and was secretly happy. It was nice to know he trusted me enough with his real name. Aragorn led us past a few tents and up to a larger one. He led the flap open, and gestured for us to enter, and after we'd done so, he followed suit. I wondered why Gandalf was in this tent, and not off fighting, I mean hadn't Aragorn told us that there was a battle going on?

"Jemma! It is good to see you!" Gandalf called from the other side of the tent, where he was bent over a cot with an unconscious soldier.

"And to you. Aragorn said you guys really need help."

"Yes, I'm afraid we do," He strode over to us, "Who's this?"

"Oh, this is my sister, Andrea."

"Ah, I'm glad you found her, at long last. And nice to meet you, Andrea."

"Do you have any information about the battle I should know about?"

"Not especially good information. I suppose all that's necessary to know now, is that there are many battalions of orcs left, and they are in our way of our ultimate goal." Gandalf informed me, then proceeded to tell me of the plans for what I remembered as the final battle against Sauron. I remembered the cinematic image of the tower crumbling, and the land falling away under the orcs' feet.

I left Andrea in the tent with Gandalf, who promised to keep a close eye on her, incase she decided to be rebellious. Aragorn led me to the 'armory' tent, where he tried to find the best suiting armor, to give me a little defense since all I was wearing was a cotton shirt, and simple wool pants. Since I was a woman, and considerably less built than all the men here, it was nearly impossible to find a chest piece. So I was settled with a helmet, which was a bit too big and kept sliding around when I jerked my head to turn, and some leather armbands, for lack of a better term since it seemed I couldn't remember what they were actually called. I strapped my quiver, with the few arrows I had, across my chest, and fixed my dagger to my belt. Aragorn helped me to search around and find some more arrows, because having just a few wasn't going to be very helpful when fighting.

When I was suitably prepared, well as good as it was going to get, Aragorn guided my to the edge of the camp. Gradually, as we continued, I heard the quiet sounds of a fight, not far off. As we walked, it got louder and louder, until we were at the edge of the tents, and I got a look at what kind of situation we were in. It looked like there were a good five thousand orcs down there, if not more, which vastly outnumbered the soldiers. I guessed that, at best, there was a thousand soldiers left standing. So Aragorn wasn't kidding when he said the situation was dire. I scanned the battle before me, looking for familiar faces, but found none.

"Doesn't look very organized." I noted.

"I know, but believe me, it is. There, you can go by the archers over there and try to shoot the secondary layers of orcs." Aragorn gestured for me to join a group of determined archers, whom I noticed was accompanied by Legolas. I did as I was told, and approached them, quickly notching an arrow, and shot into the mass of orcs. My arrow hit it's target, and one of the orcs crumbled.

"Good shot." one of the archers told me.

"Thank you." I replied, though I was more concentrated on the masses of orcs, as the pressed to break the line of soldiers, "Do we have fire arrows? There are some dry grasses in there, if we could spark that, it should lower their numbers considerably, or at the very least cause some panic."

"I agree, that would be a wise decision." Legolas told me, as he shot three arrows at once, all of them hitting their targets, and one of them even hit two orcs, disabling them.

"Anyone have some flint?" I asked, shooting a couple orcs, sure I wasn't as fast or good with the bow as Legolas, but at least I knew how to aim a bow.

"Here." One of the archers tossed me a couple of stones. That's right, there aren't simple things like lighters. I had almost forgotten about that. Looking around, I took an unlit torch, which had been resting on the ground. It took me a few tries to get it to spark, but I did eventually succeed.

"Ok, we've got flames!" I shouted, the sound of the fighting were getting louder, it seemed the orc lines were slowly encroaching on our position, "Does anyone have oil?"

An archer, while loading his next arrow, jerked his head backwards, towards a pile of arrows. There was a bowl of black oil sitting next to said pile. Grabbing it, I coated the tips of some arrows in it, then passed the arrows out. It was amazing how calm I felt, considering there were orc arrows flying past me, and chaos of fighting below. Each archer took an arrow, then I ran the torch across the tips, and as each arrow was lit, it was fired into the fray below. There must have been some sort of drought recently, since suddenly flames erupted among the orcs' numbers. A couple orcs caught fire before the others realized what was going on. Then, the battalions started to scatter, forgetting for the moment about the battle.

Then, the soldiers took this and advanced, as the archers took aim and fired. We were still outnumbered, but at least we had a slight advantage, at least for the mean time. The battle seemed to drag on, and slowly the numbers of the orcs went down faster than our own men, even if the fact was we were still losing men. Once I ran out of arrows, I unsheathed my dagger and went to help cut down some of the monsters up close. Being not that skilled in battle, I did surprisingly well, and was able to dodge or block most of the attacks, and only receiving a few minor cuts and scratches. The helmet I'd adorned became a nuisance, so at one point, I shook my head hard and it flew off somewhere. I was, at least, thankful I'd thought to braid my hair that day, otherwise it too would have been in the way. As the sun began to set, I realized that we were close to victory. There were only about a hundred orcs left, and were soon overtaken. Everyone was tired and sore, as the last orc fell, and our numbers retreated to the tents. Some of the soldiers, who had only received minor injuries early in the battle, took our place, to keep watch for any more advancing forces, as well as to burn the bodies of the fallen enemy.

Regardless of how tired I was, of how we all were, Aragorn instructed Legolas and I to head back to the larger tent I'd been in before, and he said something about going to fetch Gimli. When we entered the tent, Andrea and Gandalf were seated on some make-shift chairs, which were actually wooden barrels, and Gandalf gestured to some other barrels and boxes. I sat down, glad to finally rest for a little bit. When Aragorn and Gimli arrived, I took in the state of each one. Like me, the seemed to only have sustained minor injuries and seemed, for the most part, to be whole. Andrea passed out mugs of what I assumed to be mead, and we all gladly took one and sipped it. The warm feeling it gave me helped to ease my aching muscles, and my exhausted state of being.

"You all fought well today, I'm glad to find you made it through alright." Gandalf said, and that's when I noticed that he'd turned to Gandalf the White. Which, I'm sure, he was before, I just hadn't noticed it when we had first arrived.

"Yes, but now we have a bigger task ahead." Aragorn told us solemnly.

"And that would be?" I wondered, though I thought I knew the answer.

"Well, we have to distract Sauron's forces even more. If Frodo," Everyone winced at the word 'if', "And Sam are still alive, we need to give them the best chance.

"Yes, you're right." Legolas agreed.

It was quiet for a moment, as we all took sips from our mugs, when suddenly I heard a beeping go off. Everyone looked around, searching for the source, and my gaze fell on Angela's wrist.

"Is that...your bracelet?" I asked her, taking her wrist. Yes, I knew I recognized it, it was one of the bracelet Tommy had given us, before we'd gotten stuck here, "But, how do you have it? I thought Brandon had it?"

"Um, it kinda just appeared one day, along with a note from Tommy. He said that I might need it." Andrea told me, shyly.

"Andrea, this is great! It means we have a chance of going home!" I told her, and gave her a hug, a broad smile on my face.

"You mean you found your brother's invention, the one you needed to fetch for him?" Aragorn asked.

"Yeah," I wasn't really paying attention to him and was instead studying the bracelet, "The question is, why is it beeping?"

I removed the bracelet from my sister's arm, and turned it around, looking for the source of the sound. I found a small button on the underside of the bracelet, and pressed it. There was a flash of light, that came from the bracelet, which then engulfed all of us, and then we fell through the light.


	3. Chapter 3

**Right, first things first, I am really sorry for not updating in _Forever_, but basic reason is that life got in the way, and I couldn't do anything about it. Because of this, I will have the fourth chapter up really soon, I promise! For those who it may concern, I will update my hetalia story soon as well, but I am still in the process of sorting out the next chapter, but it will at the very least, be up by Wednesday-ish (April 2nd at the latest). Also, don't own anything from Lord of the Rings. Hope you enjoy this chapter!**

Chapter 3

**Tommy's POV**

As Tommy stared at the wall in front of him he thought, because he had already contemplated the inner workings of every mechanism in the room, why the walls of cells always had to be plain. He supposed it really wouldn't put them too out of their way to decorate the cells while they were doing so to the rest of the building (which was nicely colored and furnished), so he came to the conclusion that they just couldn't be bothered with an extra hour of work and so had discarded the thought of ever doing so. The creaky cot that Tommy was currently perched on was, as to be expected, very uncomfortable and had only a pillow resting against the wall.

Tommy's eyes flickered to the glass door to his right, where he observed various guards, if one could even call them that, going about their daily business. They hadn't even bothered to check on him since his little talk with Brandon. _Brandon_, the name echoed in his mind. The idiot had no idea what he was doing, or he obviously wouldn't have closed the only connection between this world and Middle Earth. Stupid. Brandon clearly didn't understand the mechanics of links between worlds, and the consequences of staying in one for too long.

Tommy watched as the majority of the guards began to leave for the night. _Right on que._ He thought to himself, as he rose from the cot and walked over to the door. Waiting was the hardest part, he hated waiting, for anything, much less for the guard to notice him.

Eventually, the guard glanced up and rolled his eyes. Tommy stared at him evenly, waiting for the right moment.

"What do you want?" The guard asked with a tone of boredom.

"To go for a walk."

"No. That's strictly against orders." The guard was eyeing him carefully.

"Oh please," Tommy rolled his eyes, "It's not like I'm going to escape, where would I go? Knowing Brandon we are in some deserted area of the world, with no hope of escape whatsoever."

Tommy watched as the guard thought about this. Watched as the truth of Tommy's words settled into his mind. So his assumptions would be right then.

"Well, I suppose a quick walk around wouldn't hurt…" The other's voice trailed off, but nonetheless he rose from his chair and approached Tommy's door.

The door opened, and Tommy stepped out in front of the guard, "I am hoping for something outdoors though. A bit of fresh air would help me from going insane."

"No, not outside. We'll walk to the staff room and back, that's all. No detours. And give me your hands."

Tommy offered his wrists to the other with a bored expression. He got lucky, this one was new (as by the evidence of his stiff stature and his need to follow the rules.

The guard led Tommy down a fall colored hallway, passing many closed doors on the way, and turning to the left when it ended. Their path continued until they reached a door simply labeled 'staff', and the guard opened it with a keypad code. Tommy didn't bother trying to see what it was, after all he wasn't trying to escape (he had already had plenty of opportunities to do so), and instead had a different agenda in mind.

Inside the staff room, there were three computers tucked into a corner, some foldable tables scattered around, and a miniature kitchen in another corner. The room was empty of anyone, and there wasn't even any video cameras. _Good,_ Tommy thought and a trace of a smile flickered across his lips. Luckily the guard didn't notice, as he had headed immediately towards the mini fridge. Tommy silently followed behind him.

The guard grabbed a canned beer and popped it open.

"What was that?" Tommy asked suddenly, and as predicted, the guard spun around looking alert.  
>"What?"<p>

"That noise, coming from there." Tommy gestured towards a door with a family restroom sign by it.

"I didn't hear anything." The guard told him with a searching gaze.

"Sounded like footsteps or something. I'd check it out if I were you, it's always that sort of thing that gets rookies done for."

The guard put the can down, and drew his little handgun, and crept towards the bathroom. He opened the door, and entered. Luckily, the door was an outward swinging type, as Tommy was able to quickly lean against it, and close it. He kicked a nearby chair into the way of the door, as the guard inside began to shout at him, or his radio.

Tommy ran to the computers, one of which was still logged in. Sitting sideways on a chair, he awkwardly typed away at the keyboard, bringing up different programs and commands. When his familiar desktop flashed onto the screen, he opened the bracelet commands. Unfortunately, it was impossible to see if the girls were near his bracelets, but he had to try. He opened the command matrix and typed in a code for an area transport.

Tommy silently hoped that the bracelet that Brandon had wouldn't activate as well and he activated the return sequence. The guard's banging on the door was getting more aggressive. So Tommy turned the computer off, and quickly sat down at one of the tables. He looked completely relaxed when the guard finally opened the door and hurried out.

"Tsk, getting yourself locked in a bathroom. I've been waiting to return to my cell, what kind of guard are you?" Tommy reprimanded him.

The guard only huffed in response and, after grabbing his can and putting his gun in the holster, forcefully grasped Tommy's arm and practically dragged him out of the staff room.

**Jemma's POV**

I was a little dazed when I landed on something soft. It felt like my bed at home which, after a moment, I realized was an accurate observation because it _was_ my bed. I looked around, and found Andrea sprawled across the lower part of the bed.

"What….? Andrea, are you ok?" I asked, a mix happiness and complete confusion mingling in my voice. Andrea groaned, which was a better sign than nothing. I also heard noises coming from the living room, and quickly scrambled off my bed to investigate. What I found was Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli assorted scattered around the room. _What are they doing here? On second thought, how did we get back, I thought Brandon had the other bracelet…_ I thought as I walked towards the group to make sure they were ok. They all seemed ok only a little dazed.

"What was that?" Gimli asked, pulling himself out from behind the loveseat.

"Um…." I started, quickly thinking through various explanations I could give them.

"What kind of magic was that?" Gandalf looked astonishedly out the window, no doubt shocked by the bustling city below.

"Alright, um, everyone calm down." I started, not that they really needed to be told that, but I felt it was a good start.

"Jemma, do you know what's going on?" Aragorn asked, picking himself off the coffee table (which was so cheap I was surprised it had held his weight) and turned to me. Of course, at his words, everyone did likewise, and their steady eyes watched me expectantly.

"Well, I know where we are, although I'm not entirely sure why you're here as well.."

"Just get to the point, lass." Gimli said.

"This is my apartment, I mean house."

"This doesn't look like your little cottage I found you in." Aragorn stated.

"This is my homeland." I told them, feeling a little relief at not having to lie again.

"I thought you said you came from a small village." Aragorn told me.

"Well, I grew up in a small town, yes."

"Then why did you lie?" Gandalf asked.

"Well, I didn't exactly lie, more like avoid important details…." My voice trailed off.

"What else did you 'avoid'?" Gandalf peered into my eyes.

"Well, this...I mean we're not in….Middle Earth."

They all gave me really confused looks, apart from Gandalf who was looking rather thoughtful.

"I know that sounds crazy, but we're in what's called America."

"How is this possible, how can we not be in Middle Earth?"

"Well, my brother made a device that allowed travel between here, America, and Middle Earth." I answered, "And I know you have more questions, but right now I need to go check on my brother. He could answer all of your questions, that is if he isn't in trouble, as I suspect he may be."

I headed to the door, and grabbed my coat off the hook. Turning back, I saw the group looking confused and uncertain.

"Aren't you coming? I might need your help." The words were out of my mouth before I could realize the possible consequences of them in walking around modern day America. I shrugged because there was no backing out of them now. The group looked to me and nodded.

"Yes, I believe that would be the best choice of action." Legolas stated.

"Good, let's go then," I paused before looking back at them, "Um, right, there are no dangers present, so mind leaving your weapons here? The people here aren't exactly used to openly carrying weapons anywhere….or the use of magic."

Aragorn was hesitant, but he nodded, and unbelted his sword, the rest followed suit.

"Thanks. Yeah, just follow me." After scribbling a note on the whiteboard we had near the door (for Andrea), I led the group out of my little apartment.

Seeing as how it was on the fifth floor of the building, I was forced to use the elevator. I sighed, this wasn't going to be easy.

When the elevator doors slid open, the group was very reluctant to enter, but I eventually was able to coax them in, and convince them it wasn't evil magic or anything.

Regardless of how tired I was, I knew it was going to be an even longer day. If they acted suspicious of an elevator, I wondered how they would react when they saw my little Camry.


	4. Chapter 4

I lived on the fourth floor of a multi-level apartment complex, complete with a reception desk and a little two level parking ramp. The fellowship followed me as I stepped out of the elevator, and into the main lobby. The old secretary, April, sat at her desk, squinting at her embroidery. At the sound of our footsteps, she glanced up and, unsurprisingly, looked a bit confused as she took in my group.

"My, Jemma, I didn't know you such," she paused as she studied our attire, "interesting friends."

"Uh, yeah….We're….cosplaying. Just heading out to a costume party. The theme's medieval, hence our clothing." I told her, the excuse rushing out of my mouth, and I ended with a smile to seem more convincing. I had completely forgotten I was still wearing the helmet and armguards, with the cloth shirt and pants.

"I see. Have fun." The old woman smiled and then went back to her embroidery.

"I'm sure we will," I told her needlessly, since she had already stopped paying attention to us, thank goodness she's used to all the weird things I do, "Come on guys, this way."

I led them to the side door, which led to the parking ramp, and tried to remember where my car was parked. Eventually, after many false alarms at having found cars very similar to my own, we came up on my little gray car.

"Alright. Everyone in." I said while clicking the unlock button on my keys. Its back lights winked at me, and I headed for the driver's door. Everyone else stayed still, staring at my car as if it were some kind of monster.

"What is that?" Gimli asked.

"It's my car, like a carriage, without horses. Don't worry it's perfectly safe. I promise. Here, get in." I opened the back left door to the car and motioned for them to come, "We have to hurry, and you don't need to worry."

They looked a little uncertain still, and I sighed. _It had to be Middle Earth, not alternate Earth with the Avengers._ I smiled at them, shrugged, and sat down in the driver's seat.

"If you don't want to come, fine. Just watch out when I back out." I called, closing my door, and starting the engine. Of course, as I should have expected, the noise startled them into suspicion again, "Guys, come on. My brother might need me, and this is my quickest mode of transport that doesn't cost too much."

"I suppose you know best." Aragorn commented, before climbing into the back, and the others followed suit, leaving Gandalf to climb into shotgun.

"Right. Take the belts on the side of your seats and clip it into the other side." I took my seat belt and fastened it, thankful that the annoying 'you-don't-have-your-seatbelt-on' noise turned off. Once I had helped them to fasten their belts, I backed out and sped towards the exit.

"This is fast." Legolas helpfully pointed out.

"Yeah, I suppose so," I replied, as we drove down the 30 mph side street, "But wait until we hit the highway."

We exited onto the highway and, as I was speeding up, I glanced in the mirror and saw the odd expressions on the others' faces. They looked mostly surprised and curious. I wondered what kinds of questions they were thinking about, considering I lived in a suburb of the 'big city'. It was probably similar to how I felt, when I arrived in Middle Earth. I kept my thoughts to myself, and the others did likewise. When I decided I couldn't stand the silence of the ride any longer, I turned on the radio, and 'Roar' by Katy Perry blasted out of the speakers mid chorus.

"Where the heck is that music coming from?!" Everyone asked, but it sounded more like a jumble of that words that ended in a questioning tone.

"Oh, sorry. That is a bit loud. And, uh, from my car."

"Your carriage makes music?" Gimli asked, his curious look reminded me of Pippin.

"Yeah. Sorry, I can turn it off, I just couldn't stand silence anymore."

"You can leave it on, if you wish, but what kind of music is that? Is it even music?" Gandalf questioned me.

"With all the surprises of your land, I wouldn't be surprised if that was some kind of war chant." Gimli muttered.

"We call it pop music…."

"Why?"

"I..," I thought for a moment and shrugged, "I don't actually know for sure. I thought it had something to do with popular culture, but these days who knows for sure?"

"Ah, I see."

"And, well it isn't a war chant, more like a song of bravery."

"Oh." They said at once.

Twenty minutes of driving later, we arrived at my old house. The one where I'd grown up, with my two siblings, before Andrea and I had moved out. My grandfather's minivan, I noticed, was parked along the street. _Great, just great._ I pulled into the driveway and took a deep breath.

"You think this world has surprised you? Prepare yourselves, you're about to meet my parents, and my grandfather."

I got out of the car, the others followed suit, after figuring out how to unbuckle their safety restraints. They trailed behind me as I strode to the front door, and knocked. I heard the tell-tale signs of the lock turning, and the door swung open. My mother, with her blonde hair and crystal blue eyes stared at me, and a big smile lit up her face.

"Jemma! What a nice surprise, it's been so long since I've seen you," she gave me a hug, and looked at everyone, "you must be Jemma's friends. I'm her mom, you can call me Jodie. Are you hungry? I just made some chocolate chip cookies."

I supposed this was one of the reasons I loved my mom. She was always so welcoming towards others, even complete strangers. When you were around my mom, one couldn't help but smile and be happy.

"I wish we had time to chat, mom, but we need to talk to Tommy. Is he in his room?"

"No. I thought he was with you at a special conference in Seattle...?"Her voice trailed off, and I saw the worry begin to spread on her face.

"I was just kidding, mom, he's with Carly at the hotel. And it's in Minneapolis, we just came by to grab some stuff for it," I leaned in, "we entered a contest for best costumes. And he forgot his."

"Jemma," my mom shook her head, the smile returned, "you nearly gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry," I shrugged, "guess I couldn't resist."

She shook her head, and stepped aside so we could get past. I lead them up the stairs, and into my little genius brother's room. Posters of various video game characters were scattered along the walls. Strewn across the floor was an assortment of Legos, light sabers, screwdrivers, wires, and other electrical equipment.

"So what do we do now? You needed your brother, and he's not here." Gimli pointed out, unhelpfully.

"Look for clues as to where he could've gone." I said, beginning to rummage around the drawers in his desk.

"Like what?" Aragorn asked.

"Um...,"I thought about telling them to look for cellphones or something, but then realized that wouldn't do, "look for signs of struggle and fighting."

"Alright." They agreed.

I logged onto my brother's computer and starting searching through folders and documents, looking for something, and I wasn't exactly sure what it was. When that didn't work out, I logged into his email and scrolled through the recently sent and received. Most of the emails contained only shipping confirmations of everything my brother had purchased and ordered online. I went to the inbox and refreshed the page, curious to see if any new mail had come in, and an email labeled 'Jemma' popped up.

"What?" I whispered, conscious that everyone was now watching me.

_Jemma,_

_ I don't have much time to write everything that I want to tell you. I programmed the return code on the bracelets to send this email, in case something went wrong. In all likelihood, I predict that something has gone wrong. But don't worry about me, I can (probably) get out of any sticky situation that I ended up in. What matters is that you brought back what I sent you to find. I lied that it would help the bracelets bring you back… it's actually a vital stabilizing processor for one of my most recent projects. _

_Keep it safe, I'll be in touch,_

_Tommy_

I read the email quickly, remembering what the cranky smith had told me about Tommy's invention, and how she'd smashed it to bits behind her smithy. The drawing of that invention was somewhere in the little cottage, back in Middle Earth, so it wouldn't be much help now. I sighed heavily as I closed the email and turned to the Fellowship.

"There's nothing here about where he might be. I'm sorry, but until he gets back, I think you might be stuck here for a while."

"Was he taken by someone, perhaps an enemy of his?" Aragorn asked.

"Yes, what about that Brandon boy?" Gimli pointed out.

"He's probably the one who took Tommy, but I don't know where his hideout is," I fell silent for a second, "But I think I could find out where his parents are, and they might have something that could lead us to him."

"Where are his parents then?" Gandalf asked.

"Let me see." I turned back around to the computer and opened yellow pages. I typed in Brandon's mother's name, and up popped two addresses, and a phone number. One address was for a cabin which I discarded, since it was fall outside, the other address was in a suburb of a city north of here. I estimated the drive would take at least 5 hours, if not more. It was getting dark outside, and I knew that driving tonight would not be fun, but also that staying here was not an option namely because I was sure that my mom wouldn't let 4 strangers stay in her house.

"Looks like his parents live north of here, it's quite the trip though, are you guys up for it?" I asked the awaiting group members.

"If it means helping you to find your brother, and our way home, we will be fine." Aragorn stated, while everyone nodded in agreement.

"Jemma?" My mother called from downstairs.

"Yes?" I answered.

"Your grandfather wants to see you before he heads home, will you come visit for a minute?"

"Uh...sure..." I stood and grabbed Tommy's Jedi cloak and one of his light sabers, because I had told mom that we were here to get Tommy's costume, and headed downstairs. Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, and Gandalf followed me down and into the living room. My grandpa sat in the old wooden rocking chair, holding a cup of coffee, and seemed to be chatting with my dad.

"Hey." I said, walking towards him, and giving him a hug, "How are you doing? You're back okay? How's Grandma?"

"Oh, pretty good, my back hasn't bothered me since...well it had to be a month ago at least. Your Grandma misses you, she's always complaining about how you don't visit enough."

"Grandpa," I smiled at him, "You know how busy I am, but tell Grandma that I do miss her, and I'll make a point to visit soon."

"It's really good to see you. I suppose I should introduce myself to your friends, eh? Ask 'em if they want a cup of coffee, and we can sit and chat for a bit."

"That sounds nice, but we have to get going. Tommy and Carly are expecting us at the hotel soon, and we just came for his costume after all." I pointed out to him.

"Oh, I see. Have fun at your get together, or whatever it is." He gave me another hug as I turned to leave.

"Bye, love you guys." I called, as I led my group out the front door.

"Love you too!" They called behind me.


End file.
